What does a Civil Litigation Attorney Do?

If you are involved in a lawsuit, you need strong and experienced legal representation.  A civil lawsuit deals with who is responsible for damages or injuries, determines who is at fault, and decides just compensation for the victim.  The case may be heard in state or federal courts.  Whether you are pursuing such a lawsuit, or defending against it, your lawyer is going to be the key to getting the best outcome for you.

We are attorneys who guide our clients through the entire legal process.  A lawsuit is typically a complex and stressful experience.  As your representatives, we don’t shy away from the difficulties, and work hard on your behalf, to get justice for you and your interests.

Our Attorneys Will Ease Your Stress

Long before your case even gets to court, your counsel will guide you through the process of filing a civil lawsuit. The attorneys at Webb & Ord will help you decide the best avenue for compensation. Perhaps your case can be settled without a lengthy trial.  Our attorneys will help you make that decision.

Webb & Ord represents businesses, individuals and institutions in a wide array of civil claims, including:

Over Two Decades of Experience with California Lawsuits

The Los Angeles Business Litigation attorneys of Webb & Ord have over two decades of experience in commercial litigation. When you find your company in a make or break scenario, you want a law firm that you can trust to meet your objectives. Webb & Ord specialize in finding creative solutions to achieve our clients’ goals in any dispute. We are aware of the high cost of litigation, and strive to chart the most efficient and effective course to your legal goals. Rather than simply going through the motions and cashing a check, Webb & Ord will strive to bring any litigation to a quick and successful end to let your business get back on track.

We Prepare to Litigate Any Case

When there are contract disputes, they need to be settled once and for all.  If litigation can be avoided, it is usually a better outcome, but we prepare your case as if litigation is unavoidable.  Webb & Ord takes California business litigation cases in a wide variety of categories, including:

Protect Your Real Estate Investment

Real Estate is a big investment. Whether you are an owner, investor or real estate developer, protect your commercial or residential investment with comprehensive legal representation from Webb & Ord.

We Prepare as if Every Case is Going to Court

Real estate transactions can and do go wrong. Financing can fall through, participants can dispute purchase agreements and owners can find themselves upside-down in their investments. As real estate projects move from stage to stage, we can prepare you for the legal issues, opportunities and pitfalls that can arise.  We can help you ask the right questions, and chart a practical course through a complicated project. From the beginning, we seek the best alternatives and outcomes for you, but we prepare as if every case is going to land in court.

Our attorneys are experienced and have shown proven results in many types of Real Estate Litigation.

California Breach of Contract Attorney

The way in which we conduct business is constantly changing and evolving. Businesses are always looking for new ways to sell products, serve customers and grow. The one thing that does not change, is the value of a person or corporation’s “word.” In business, real estate and in individual dealings, the acceptance (and signing of) a contract is entering into an agreement in which both parties have rights–implied and explicit. The breach of contract attorneys at Webb & Ord will scrutinize your contract, look for ways in which it can go wrong, and prepare you to protect your rights.

A failure to comply to the terms of a contract, also known as a breach of contract, can lead to devastating financial losses for an business or an individual. A breach of contract will waste both time and money, and often a lawsuit is required to settle the dispute. Indeed, breach of contracts are one of the most common lawsuits heard in courts worldwide.

Do I Have a Breach of Contract Case?

In order to move forward with a breach lawsuit, your case should satisfy one of the following four breach criteria:

Minor breach

A partial or minor breach includes cases when the contract has not been fulfilled completely. Let’s say you paid a contractor to build a fence, but there were some errors. You could sue for damages if you’ve had to pay a secondary contractor to fix it, or to force the original contractor to correct his errors.

Fundamental breach

As indicated by the name, a fundamental breach is the failure to satisfy a fundamental element of the contract. A common example of this type of breach is a tenant lease contract. You’ve signed a lease to move in on a certain date, but upon arrival on that date, the previous tenant is still occupying the location. In this case the landlord has had a fundamental lapse, and a fundamental breach of contract.

Material breach

This type of breach is a the failure of one party to hold up their end of the bargain, and is one of the most serious types of breach of contracts. A common example of this type is a the non-payment of a contract. The contractor has done his job to satisfaction, expecting to collect payment at the end of the project. If the buyer does not send payment within a period of time defined but the contract, then he is in material breach of contract. These types of cases often are settled in court.

Anticipatory breach

As the name implies, this type of breach occurs when there is no reasonable expectation that the contract will be fulfilled. An example of this type would be if a business paid to have a warehouse built by a certain day, once it appears obvious that this date may not be met, it is possible to sue for damages.

Webb & Ord are aggressive contract lawyers, located in Los Angeles, California. We can take cases anywhere throughout California, from San Diego County up to the Redwoods.

Fiduciary duty is the responsibility to act in the best interest of someone else. The executives of a company have a duty to the shareholders, an attorney has a fiduciary duty to his client.

A fiduciary duty is a legal duty to act solely in another party’s interests.

-Legal Information Institute, Cornell University

A breach of this fiduciary duty, therefore, is any time the advisor acts contrary to the interests of the client. The fiduciary is held to a high standard of ethics, but often, as is human nature, the fiduciary will act in a way that benefits himself, or fails his duty simply due to incompetence.

Common Examples of a Fiduciary Duty

Attorney & Client – Previously mentioned, the relationship between an attorney and client is one of the strictest. Attorneys are held responsible for their actions in court when representing their clients. The utmost level of confidence and trust must exist between attorney and client.

Trustee & Trust Beneficiaries – A very common one, due to the proliferation of wills and trusts. Under many estate arrangements, the fiduciary has legal ownership of the property and is responsible for making decisions on behalf of the beneficiaries.

Guardian & Minor – The legal guardian of a minor (when the natural guardian is not able to care for the child) has a fiduciary responsibility to the minor. This responsibility includes things like arranging for schooling, medical care, even daily things like discipline and diet. The guardian has a legal responsibility to care for the child until he or she reaches the age of majority.

Webb & Ord are experienced in trying cases for breach of fiduciary action. Don’t sit idly by if there is a possibility of foul play. Contact the attorneys at Webb & Ord to defend your rights.

Hiding Major Real Estate Defects is Against the Law

Under California law, it is illegal to knowingly conceal major real estate defects to prospective buyers. Is there toxic mold in the ceiling? Does the roof leak? Has this property been damaged by a flood or earthquake?

Real Estate Agents Can Also Be Liable

If you bought your property through an agent, the seller’s agent is also responsible to disclose this information. Any damages incurred due to non-disclosed defects are the responsibility of both the agent and the previous owner.

How Long Do I Have to Bring A Claim?

In cases against a real estate agent there is a 2 year statute of limitations on your damages claim; in cases against the direct seller, you have 3. If you’ve bought a property and have discovered undisclosed defects, it is important that you get in contact with legal representation and an assessor as soon as possible.

What Information Does my Attorney Need?

In reality, any and all information about the property and the purchase of the property will help support your case. In particular, you want to list every undisclosed defect that caused you damages or monetary expenditure. A detailed history of repairs and other expenses incurred due to the undisclosed problems will only increase the value of your claim.

What If My Property Was Inspected or Sold “As-Is?”

Doesn’t matter. Even if you purchased the property as-is, it is fraudulent for the seller to knowingly fail to disclose major defects. Even if your inspector did not find the defect, it does not weaken your case . The seller is responsible for disclosing any and all defects in the sale of the property.

As the buyer of a property, California law grants you many protections. Don’t let these go to waste, and don’t let an unethical seller or agent scare you into inaction.

The sad truth is that any industry involving multi-million dollar transactions will have some level of corruption and fraud. Greed drives unscrupulous actions intended to deceive less-informed or less-observant parties.  Whether you think you have been defrauded, or are being accused of fraud, the attorneys at Webb & Ord can defend and guide you safely through the legal process.

What if I think I’m a Victim of Real Estate Fraud?

You should contact a real estate attorney immediately, there are statute of limitations on processes and paperwork and you don’t want to miss any important deadlines.

Real Estate Fraud Comes in Many Forms

Does something about your real estate transaction just not feel right? For your reference, here are a few common types of real estate fraud.  There are more variations than you can imagine.

• • Title Fraud — The oldest trick in the book, in this case the scammer simply forges counterfeit documents to pose as the property owner. This type of fraud overlaps greatly with identity theft law, as often the fake property owner will take out a mortgage on the property that the real property owner is responsible for. Additionally, a scammer may sell a property with forged documents and flee with the cash.

• Online Scams — In this scam, the defrauder will post pictures of a property on a marketplace website, such as craigslist.com, in an attempt to “rent” (or “sell”, in rare cases) the property. The scammer does not actually have access to the property, but will assure you that if you simply send a money order or bank transfer, they will next-day ship the keys to the place. Most of the time the owner of this property happens to be out of the country, and the property is probably “too good to be true.” This is a very common scam, and many of you who may have checked out online rental hubs may have seen examples of this type of scam.
• Foreclosure and Home-Equity Fraud — A property owner that is strapped for cash and late on mortgage payments is a vulnerable target to scammers. In this type of scam, a criminal or criminal company may offer a loan to consolidate loans, in exchange for a transfer of the property title (or some other concession, such as monthly payments). In this scam, the criminal never actually consolidates the property owners, and like most scams, at some point absconds with the money.

Webb & Ord are Experienced in Fighting Real Estate Fraud in California.

Business is Complicated.  Disagreements Do Happen.

The attorneys at Webb & Ord have decades of experience representing California clients in litigation and mediation concerning commercial disputes. Disputes between buyers and sellers, employer and employee, principals and agents, contractors and sub-contractors, investors and owners — whatever the problem or whoever the parties, we can help you sort out the tangles issues and move toward a successful resolution.  Our attorneys are always prepared to go to court and fight on your behalf — but litigation and be expensive and time consuming (and unpredictable!).  The attorneys at Webb & Ord also bring a deep background in mediating complex business cases.

Long Experience in Litigating California Business Disputes

Commerce has been with us for millennia, and Business Law has grown to encompass the variety and complexity of real-life situations.  It involves corporate contracts, hiring practices, governmental regulations, invoicing, billing and collection — every aspect of conducting commerce.  Our areas of emphasis include:

Litigation is Expensive

Even as litigators, who enjoy going to trial and who truly rely on the courts for the success of our clients, we realize that going to court and trying a case can be a long and expensive process. The time invested and the sheer cost of court fees and attorneys can weigh down a company. Time spent in court is time spent out of your office, away from sales and growth of your business.  Your case can languish in court for years, as discoveries and motions drag on and on.  Sometimes, this is the only way.

A good attorney will help you weigh all your options, and will seek the most fair and efficient outcomes.  Webb and Ord facilitate flexible, creative, out of court settlements.  We help you find the best outcomes possible, always taking into consideration the constraints of time and cost.

Less Adversarial Than the Courtroom, and Quieter

The arbitration process is designed to be less formal and more collaborative than is courtroom litigation.  When you want to preserve an ongoing business relationship with the other party in a dispute,  arbitration or mediation may be a better choice than a lawsuit in court.   There is also the additional advantage that there is no public hearing, and no public record.   The parties can agree to keep the dispute in confidence, avoiding publicity.

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